Fire-places and Kitchen Utensils. 239 



For greater security against accidents from too strong 

 fires, I would advise the fire-place to be made extremely 

 I had almost said ridiculously small, not more than 

 from 4 to 5 inches wide, from 6 to 8 inches long, and 

 about 5 inches deep ; and I would place the bottom or 

 grating of the fire-place 1 1 or 1 2 inches below the bottom 

 of the oven. For still greater security, the bottom of the 

 oven, immediately over the fire, might, if it should be 

 found necessary, be defended ,by a thin plate of cast, 

 hammered, or sheet iron, full of small holes (as large as 

 peas), placed about half an inch from the bottom of the 

 oven, and directly below it ; but, if any common degree 

 of attention be used in the management of the fire, this 

 precaution will not, I am persuaded, be necessary. 



In setting these ovens, care must be taken that room 

 be left for the flame and smoke to come into contact 

 with the oven, and surround it on every side ; and it can 

 hardly be necessary to add that a canal must be made 

 by which the smoke can afterwards pass off into the 

 chimney. 



I once imagined that small ovens for poor cottagers 

 might be made very cheap indeed, by making only the 

 bottom of the oven of iron, and building up the rest with 

 bricks ; but, on making the experiment, it was not found 

 to answer. I caused several ovens on this principle to 

 be constructed in my kitchen, and made many attempts 

 to correct their faults; but I found it impossible to heat 

 them equally and sufficiently. I then altered my plan, 

 by making both the bottom and the top of sheet iron. 

 But this even did not answer. It might answer for a 

 perpetual oven, like that which I caused to be made in 

 the House of Industry at Dublin ; but, if an oven of this 

 kind is ever suffered to become cold, it will require a 



